


Lovesick

by BronzeQuill



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Fluff, Humor, Hyuuga Neji Lives, Oblivious, POV Outsider, Post-Fourth Shinobi War
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-19
Updated: 2020-12-19
Packaged: 2021-03-11 01:07:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,244
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28166724
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BronzeQuill/pseuds/BronzeQuill
Summary: Lee may not have the Byakugan, but he isn’t blind, thank you very much.
Relationships: Gaara & Rock Lee, Hyuuga Neji/Tenten
Kudos: 68





	Lovesick

Though Rock Lee possessed neither the legendary Uchiha Sharingan, nor the all-seeing Hyūga Byakugan, he considered his eyesight pretty good by civilian standards. Even if his vision were poor, Lee thought to himself, he would surely have to be especially ignorant not to understand the situation before him.

He began noticing the signs one bright summer morning, as he and Neji waited outside Tenten’s apartment to embark on Team Gai’s next mission. It was a simple and straightforward C-rank that any one of them could have completed on their own. Neji had volunteered to deliver a message to the Wind Daimyō, as he also had clan business to attend to in Suna shortly thereafter. Tenten seized the opportunity to accompany him, excitedly fantasizing about the new and exotic weapons she hoped to purchase there. Lee, of course, was not to be left behind. He hoped to pay a visit to his close friend, Gaara, and was certain that Neji and Tenten wouldn’t mind him tagging along.

It was truly a blessing, Lee mused, that the village was peaceful enough after the war to spare the manpower.

Though Gai-sensei could not accompany them on this trip, Lee saw no reason to slack off on his training. Rather, he saw this as an excellent opportunity to double - no, triple! - his efforts. When they returned, Lee vowed, Gai-sensei would surely be impressed with his improvement!

“...98, 99, 100!” he counted triumphantly, as he hopped down from Tenten’s door frame. He landed lightly on his feet, and proceeded to lie down to begin a set of 100 sit ups.

“I’m really not sure Tenten would appreciate you doing pull-ups there,” Neji sighed. “This place is already falling apart enough as it is.”

That was true - their team’s most precious flower’s apartment building was admittedly a little shabby. After Pain’s attack on Konoha, this neighborhood was one of the last to be re-built, primarily with leftover supplies from more affluent areas. Tenten, belonging to no clan and boasting no inheritance, could only afford a small studio. The hastily assembled mismatched wood was charming, Lee had thought optimistically. As were the exposed pipes and ratty brown carpeting. Still, it wasn’t very polite to contribute additional damage to her home.

“You are right, Neji. I will be sure to formally apologize to Tenten when she finishes getting ready!”

Neji huffed as if in annoyance, but the amusement in his eyes belied his true fondness. Though he would never verbally admit it, Lee knew how much Neji truly cared for his fellow teammates. They had all grown inexplicably closer after his near-death during the war, even spending time one-on-one with each other following training sessions. Lee greatly enjoyed the evenings he spent conversing with Neji, or having sleepovers with Tenten, or hanging out with Gai-sensei when neither of the other two were available. He was sure that both Tenten and Neji also appreciated their additionally strengthened bonds. Even Gai-sensei noticed the renewed vigor of Neji’s youth!

A loud noise and surprised shout interrupted Lee’s thoughts. He leapt to his feet, wide eyes meeting Neji’s as they both thought the same thing.

“Tenten!” he cried, jiggling the door handle, the force and intensity of his hand nearly ripping it clean off of the door. “Are you alright?”

“Byakugan!”

Neji’s veins bulged near his temples as he activated his dōjutsu. His eyes quickly scanned the width of Tenten’s apartment, searching for his teammate. Almost immediately after locating his target, his Byakugan deactivated and his face began to flood with color. He spun around quickly and refocused his eyes on the shaggy carpet, the tips of his ears burning bright red.

The Hyūga already bore a ridiculously strong resemblance to one another, Lee thought, but he had never seen Neji look quite so much like Hinata-san.

“Neji! Is everything okay? Did you see Tenten?”

If it was at all possible, Neji flushed an even brighter shade of red.

“She’s fine,” he stated shortly. Lee stepped closer to him, but his eyes darted away uncomfortably. His stance was suddenly stiff, his spine ramrod straight, and his face was turned towards the hall, as far away from Tenten’s door as he could get it without uprooting his feet.

Lee peered closer at his friend, quickly examining his reddened face and coming to a logical conclusion to this most bizarre reaction. He slapped a hand on Neji’s forehead, ignoring his shout of protest. His hand was pushed away immediately, but Lee was not one to be deterred.

The subsequent cat-fight that ensued continued on for several minutes until Tenten finally emerged from her apartment. The kunoichi looked to be fully dressed and prepared for a mission, but her hair was down from her signature double buns and was dripping wet. She awkwardly fumbled with the barely-attached door handle as she made her apologies.

“Sorry for being late, you guys, the head of my shower broke off just as I was stepping in. I was going to take a shower last night, but I stayed up super late preparing my scrolls for all the weapons I’m planning on—what are you two doing? We haven’t even left yet and you’re already sparring?”

“Tenten!” Lee shouted exuberantly, jumping to his feet. “I am so glad to hear that you are okay! We were very worried about you. In fact, I believe Neji was so worried that he became overcome with a sudden fever!”

“A fever?” Tenten asked, stepping in close to Neji. She placed her hand on his forehead, brows furrowing as she stared up at his face. His cheeks, which had just begun to regain their typical pallor, blushed deeply once more. His eyes grew wide and he stood frozen in place. Lee was sure that if he had pupils, they would have been massively blown. Neji swallowed thickly. Their eyes met in a striking moment of tension before she released him.

“You seem fine!” she shrugged, shouldering her bag on and striding obliviously down the hall. “Come on, guys, those weapons aren’t going to go buy themselves!”

\---

“Thank you for treating us to Suna’s culinary delicacies, Kazekage-sama!”

“It’s no trouble. And please, Lee, just Gaara is fine.”

Neji’s simple mission was completed in record time, and Tenten’s transportation scrolls were filled to the brim with new goodies. This left only one item on their to-do list while in Wind Country: maintain ties with their greatest political and military allies. This was also known as hanging out with Gaara. They were seated at a dimly lit booth, in one of Sunagakure’s more hidden eateries. Though the tourism industry in Suna picked up after the Fourth Shinobi World War, this restaurant was mainly populated by Suna natives. Neji sat across from Tenten, delicately drinking his tea. Rock Lee was heartily diving into his pan-fried gizzard with gusto. Gaara was updating him on the recent additions to his cacti garden, their conversation barely audible over the din of the other patrons.

“Yeah, you’d think that you’d be on first-name basis with someone after they nearly beat you to death…” Tenten muttered under her breath. Neji kicked her shin under the table.

“Don’t be rude!” he hissed.

She stuck her tongue out at him before immediately stuffing her face with her own helping of gizzard. Almost immediately, Tenten retched, and after checking to make sure that none of Suna’s shinobi were looking, spit out her food and shoved the dish away from her. Neji rolled his eyes at her as the waitress delivered his more conservative choice of sesame dumplings.

She eyed his plate enviously, an unspoken plea in her expression. Silently, Neji pushed several dumplings towards her before including himself in Lee and Gaara’s conversation.

“...I am sorry to miss Gai-sensei and Kakashi-sensei’s table tennis competition, but I am very grateful and happy to be visiting you, Gaara-chan! And I am so pleased to hear about the health of your succulents. Oh, and this gizzard is absolutely delicious, I have never had anything quite like it! Tenten, how did you enjoy it?”

“Gaara-chan?” Neji mouthed.

Gaara paled slightly. “Really, Lee, please just call me Gaara.”

Lee looked expectantly over at Tenten, whose cheeks were stuffed full of Neji’s dumplings. She froze, caught red-handed with the last dumpling sandwiched between her chopsticks, the aforementioned native Suna dish practically untouched beside her. Swallowing, she gave Lee and Gaara a thumbs-up and a sheepish smile. Gaara raised a non-existent eyebrow at her. At her panicked look, Neji came to her rescue.

“I asked her to try some of the dumplings I ordered,” he lied smoothly. “I didn’t think I could finish this entire order by myself.”

“Yes, of course! Sesame dumplings are Tenten’s favorite food after all. It is so thoughtful of you to remember that, Neji!”

A delicate blush rose to his cheeks.

“I wasn’t hungry, that’s all,” Neji said, as his stomach growled over the chatter of the restaurant.

Lee furrowed his impressively thick brows. First the sudden fever, and now the loss of appetite? Surely there had to be something wrong with his dearest teammate. In fact, it was curious that he had ordered sesame dumplings in the first place. Lee took special care to be aware of his teammate’s preferences, and though he knew that Tenten favored the dish, Neji didn’t care much for sesame. Lee himself didn’t quite understand why anyone would dislike any food, especially something as mild and innocuous as sesame, but he respected his friends’ opinions nonetheless. He opened his mouth to protest, when Gaara, taking pity on the situation, interrupted with an offer of dessert.

Perhaps something more familiar to the Konoha palate, this time.

\---

A bell rang out, announcing Team Gai’s entrance into Yamanaka Flowers. The trio had barely returned from their mission to Suna when they were met with rather unfortunate news. Their beloved sensei, in a youthful effort to outdo the Rokudaime Hokage in the most intense ping-pong match that Konoha had ever seen, had recently put himself into a self-inflicted coma. He was currently being monitored at the hospital. It was only right that his precious and dutiful students present him with flowers to greet his return to consciousness!

Lee’s nostrils flared astonishingly wide as he took deep inhales, absorbing the aroma of every bouquet. After all, Konoha’s Noble Green Beast deserved to be gifted only the most fragrant of flowers. As he busied himself intensely sniffing the plants on display, he heard Ino call out to Tenten from behind the register.

“Tenten! I’m so glad you swung by, there’s someone here I’d like you to meet,” Ino leaned over the counter, grabbing the arm of a kind-looking brown-haired chūnin. He boasted a truly impressive if slightly unflattering moustache, Lee thought.

“This is Haru, his family sells us our garden shears. I was thinking you two might be able hit it off.” She said in a sing-song voice, giving Tenten and Haru an exaggerated wink and waggling her eyebrows. Haru quirked an eyebrow of his own. Tenten gave her a confused look before obligingly making her way over.

“Feel free to have some...rousing…conversation.” Ino winked again. Lee wondered if she was developing an eye twitch.

Neji scowled, and Ino grinned wickedly at him. He pretended to browse the inventory as Tenten became drawn into conversation.

“Have you found any bouquets befitting our beloved sensei yet, Neji?” Lee asked in an unintentionally loud voice.

“Shh, shut up,” he hissed, accidentally knocking over a vase in his unsubtle attempt to eavesdrop on Tenten and Haru.

Ino sauntered over them, an evil look in her eye. She swung her ponytail over her shoulder. “Can I help you boys with anything?”

“Yes! We are looking for—”

“What is this?” Neji demanded.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Ino denied, with a grin that directly contradicted her statement. “I’m just helping out a friend as Konoha’s foremost love expert!”

A peal of laughter from the other side of the store rang out, deepening Neji’s scowl even further. He crossed his arms. “If this is because of some sort of petty grudge—”

“Well, you know what they say,” she shrugged, picking up a potted plant and aggressively slicing off some small side branches. “Hell hath no fury. And besides!” Ino turned and jabbed him in the chest with two well-manicured fingers. “What does Tenten’s love life have to do with you? It’s time to shit or get off the pot, Hyūga.”

Neji looked scandalized at her language. She whistled as she walked back to the register, subtly giving Tenten yet another wink as she slid behind the counter again.

Lee looked confused and asked Neji if he knew what she was talking about. White eyes narrowed as Tenten erupted in a bout of giggles, playfully pushing Haru on the shoulder. The other man seemed highly engaged in their conversion, oblivious to the fuming Jōnin on the other side of the store.

“Er...Neji. Are you aware that you are currently radiating killing intent?” Lee asked delicately. “Do you think you might be able to tune it down? We are in public, after all.”

He grabbed a random bouquet and shoved it aggressively into Lee’s hand, before stalking out of the store. His chin was tilted upwards in an arrogant display reminiscent of his childhood demeanor. The bell’s chime punctuated his annoyance as he slammed the door upon his exit.

Lee stood dumbfounded, and slightly wounded at his friend’s seemingly unprompted change of mood. He made his way to the check-out, placing Gai-sensei’s slightly squashed flowers on the table.

“Oh, Haru, this is my teammate Lee!” Tenten gestured towards the green-clad taijutsu expert. “Lee, Haru was just telling me about the custom kunai he crafted for his boyfriend’s birthday.” 

“That is indeed an awfully kind gift!” Lee offered politely, but his thoughts were turned elsewhere.

What on Earth could be the cause of Neji’s sudden mood? Their teammate may not have been the most optimistic or enthusiastic of Team Gai, but he hadn’t been nearly this haughty and irritable in years...

\---

A crisp, early morning greeted Maito Gai and his darling pupils with a smile; a gentle breeze swept over the aching, sweaty backs of the shinobi in the midst of a particularly brutal training session. Their sensei was celebrating his return to full consciousness with great vigor and enthusiasm, increasing the intensity of their training twofold. Lee, Tenten, and Neji all raced to be the second member of their team to reach the bottom of Hokage Rock.

Or rather, Lee and Neji raced, while Tenten lightly jogged behind, grumbling that of course Gai-sensei would get first place - he was in a wheelchair, for Hashirama’s sake! Lee flew down the mountain, empowered by the spirit of his Youth™ and Neji refused to fall behind him lest he be splattered with the monstrous volume of Lee’s dripping sweat.

The two men matched each other pace for pace, each struggling to gain the upper hand. The bushier-browed of the two glanced at his rival.

Breaking out into a wide smile, Lee exclaimed, “I’m glad that your ailing health has not affected your endurance and vigor!”

At that, Neji stumbled slightly. “My what? What do you mean my—” but Lee had already sprinted forward closer to the finish line. Neji cursed under his breath and resumed his breakneck speed, unwilling to concede defeat.

Lee skidded to a stop near Gai-sensei once he reached the bottom of the mountain. He and Gai rejoiced loudly and with great rivers of tears. Maito Gai really was so proud of his precious student - not that his other students were any less precious, of course, the very idea of picking favorites was inconceivable! Though Neji had acknowledged Lee as his rival years before, it was still fulfilling to see the blood, sweat, and tears of definitely-not-Gai’s-favorite-pupil pay off.

Speaking of blood, sweat, and tears -- Tenten, apparently having decided that Gai’s wheelchair counted as a ninja tool, concluded that she was also allowed to use ninja tools. The kunoichi had pulled out one of her scrolls and summoned a skateboard. She rode down Hokage Rock with great speed and grace, catching up to Neji in record time.

She did not, however, account for the unusually slippery surface caused by Lee’s excessive bodily fluids.

Her skateboard shot backwards as her momentum carried her forward. Her body flew into the air, her expression wide and panicked as she braced herself for a very rough landing. At the sound of her yelp, Neji turned around and despite his surprise, dove to catch her. They both gave a pained “oof” upon impact, but his arms wrapped around her securely, holding her body tight to his. They tumbled down the rest of the hill together, landing in a discombobulated heap just past Lee and Gai.

Their sudden entrance halted the 200 set of Lee’s victory push-ups. He looked up, taking in the sight before him.

Tenten lay flat on the ground, her chest heaving as she tried to recover her breath. Neji straddled her waist, his hands positioned around her head on the ground. Her face was flushed, her hair pulled out of her signature twin buns and strewn wildly about. Neji’s eyes were wide, his mouth slightly parted, and his face really, really close to Tenten’s.

“Neji, Tenten! Are you okay?” Lee cried loudly. It was like a bubble popped, a brief moment of electricity interrupted by Lee’s oblivious concern.

Neji bolted upright, springing to his feet. One hand covered the lower half of his face as he blushed bright crimson, making strangled and nonsensical excuses before darting away towards the Hyūga compound. Tenten hauled herself onto her feet, brushing away the dirt and leaves her clothes had picked up on her involuntary tumble. All three of the remaining members of Team Gai looked confused at Neji’s sudden departure.

Watching a flustered and panicked Neji urgently push past civilians before disappearing into the crowded streets of Konoha, Lee furrowed his impressive brow. Drops of blood were scattered vaguely in the direction his teammate had run.

Was he...having a nosebleed?

\---

Two weeks had passed, and though the Hyūga’s bizarre behavior only seemed to intensify, no one aside from Lee seemed to notice any changes. His piercing and distinctive voice shattered the weapons’ mistress’ peaceful afternoon.

“Tenten, I must speak to you!”

“Lee?” Tenten turned slightly away from her target as she idly threw five shuriken into a perfect X. “What is it?”

She was sitting carelessly on a post in the western training ground, an open scroll of weapons draped over her lap. Lee skidded to a halt near his teammate, sandwiching her hand earnestly in his.

“Tell me, have you noticed anything different about Neji?”

She paused, giving Lee her full attention. “I mean, he’s been leaving training a little earlier than usual lately, but I figured he was trying to avoid Gai-sensei’s protein smoothie experiments or something.”

“Oh, yes!” Lee shouted, becoming re-energized by the thought of Maito Gai’s newest training supplements. Tenten shuddered at the memory she had tried to repress. He jumped up, brandishing his arms wildly and pointing his finger in demonstration. “That is exactly what I have been talking about!”

“I mean, if I could use clan business as an excuse, I’d avoid the smoothies too—”

“No, I was not referring to the smoothies! I noticed that his behavior has become very bizarre and erratic lately! Honestly, I believe that he has taken ill.”

Tenten shot him a confused look. “You think he’s sick? He seems perfectly fine to me.”

“Surely you have noticed!” Lee cried, grabbing onto Tenten’s arm. He ignored her yelp of surprise. “His sudden fevers—”

“—he didn’t seem all that feverish to me—”

“—the loss of appetite—”

“...okay, I can explain that one—”

“—sudden irritation and snappiness—”

“—how is that any different from his normal attitude—”

“—and the random nosebleeds!”

“Wait, stop, what? He’s been getting nosebleeds?”

Lee nodded vigorously.

Furrowing her brow, Tenten looked worried. “Well, I can excuse the rest of it, but if he’s getting nosebleeds now too, maybe he is sick! When did you see them happen?”

Lee pondered for a second. “I first noticed it after our training session on Hokage Rock...and again during our last round of no-weapons close-range sparring...and then during that scroll retrieval mission where you lost control of your chakra and fell in the river…”

Tenten scowled at the reminder before her concern overtook her annoyance. “But I was there for all of that! How could I not notice?”

“Well, Tenten, in all honesty, you are not the most observant member of our team!”

She smacked him on the shoulder.

“Have you already spoken to him about it?”

“I tried to, but he just told me to get lost and kicked me out of the Hyūga compound. I admit, 3 AM might not have been the best time to confront him about this, but I was just so worried for our dear teammate’s health that I could not sleep at all! Do you think you could come with me to ask him about it?”

She looked at him skeptically. Even as she started packing her scrolls away, she asked, “What makes you think he’d respond better to me?” Tenten walked over and forcefully pulled her shuriken out of the target post.

Lee gave her a thumbs up and a large grin. “I am sure that he would be willing to listen if both of his teammates are present. If there is anyone that can help Neji with this, it is definitely you!”

Tenten blushed slightly, flattered despite her doubt. “You really think so?”

“Yes! In fact, let us go speak to him now!” Ignoring Tenten’s squawk of “What, right now?”, Lee charged forward towards the Hyūga compound, dragging her behind him. “Tenten, our teammate’s health is of utmost importance. We must not wait a single second, if there is anything we can do to help him!”

They walked through the streets of Konoha, dodging shinobi and civilians alike on their way to their destination. Tenten wove expertly (if reluctantly) through the crowd, though it was no hardship with the way people yelped and scrambled to avoid Lee’s exuberant stride. His intense, narrow focus almost caused him to miss the target of their self-appointed mission himself.

Just as the erroneously well-intentioned duo passed Yamanaka Flowers, Tenten caught a familiar glimpse of flowing dark hair. Its owner seemed to be inspecting a bouquet of the sharpest looking flowers the weapons master had ever seen. He stood outside the store, making aborted movements as if considering whether to place the flowers down or take them home with him.

“Lee!” she hissed, yanking on her teammate’s arm. “I found him, he’s here!”

They stumbled towards Neji, who upon noticing them, looked panicked and quickly shoved the bouquet back onto its display. He looked uncharacteristically flustered, as if caught red-handed somehow. Lee placed one emotion-filled hand on each of his friends’ shoulders.

“My dearest rival,” Lee took a deep breath as he began, “We, as your teammates, would like to share our concerns regarding—”

He never got an opportunity to share his concerns, as a single well-manicured hand thrust out from the door of the flower shop, twisted into his jumpsuit, and yanked him inside. In falling forward, he was forced to release his grip on his friends’ shoulders, sending them careening violently towards each other. He landed in a discombobulated heap, the door shut firmly behind him.

“Ino-san, what—”

“Shh!!” Ino stage-whispered. “Just look!”

They both ran to the shop’s display window, the tops of their heads just barely peeking out from the edge of the display. Lee watched as Neji very gentlemanly offered a hand to help Tenten up from where she was sprawled out on the ground, and almost sheepishly offered her the flattened kunai-shaped flowers. Tenten’s mouth formed a small “o” as she finally put two-and-two together. She blushed, likely both at the offering and in embarrassment at her own obliviousness. Ino and Lee watched as the two bashfully smiled, walking hand-in-hand away from the flower shop.

“Oh, how joyous that my beloved teammates have discovered the wonders of young love!” Lee declared passionately, wiping the tears away from his very expressive face. “May they blessedly spend the springtime of their youth together!”

“How romantic!” Ino cooed. She sighed, immensely pleased with her own genius. “I didn’t even have to do a Mind Transfer that time!”

As Lee continued waxing poetic about youth and love and springtime, she paused, her expression contorting into one of rage.

“That bastard! He didn’t even pay for that bouquet!”

\---

Next week saw all of Team Gai finishing up dinner at Yakiniku Q. They were making idle chit-chat as Gai-sensei was busy paying the bill. Lee noticed his teammate’s hands gently intertwined on the table, Neji softly twisting his hand to brush his thumb against Tenten’s calloused palms.

“Oh, Neji, I am so pleased to know that your health has made a full recovery!”

Neji paused, cocking an eyebrow at Lee. “...You know that I was never actually sick, right?”

Tenten giggled, amused at her jumpsuit-clad friend’s perceived obliviousness while attempting to ignore the fact that she had been nearly as clueless as he.

Lee smiled broadly at the duo. “What are you talking about? Lovesickness is the most severe malady of all!”


End file.
